Banned outfit targets youth to establish "caliphate" in Pak

Islamabad: The banned Hizb-ut-Tahrir has instructed its cadres to focus on Pakistani youth, professionals and the middle-class to implement the group`s aim of establishing a "caliphate" in Pakistan, according to a media report today.

A senior source within the HuT, which was banned by former military ruler Pervez Musharraf but freely operates in many western countries, told The News daily that the group`s leadership has authorised the dedication of resources for targeting Pakistani youth within and outside Pakistan.

The HuT`s international leadership has asked its supporters to trim their beards or go clean-shaven so as not to appear suspicious, the source was quoted as saying.

"The infiltration is on a massive scale and it is understood that Pakistan`s spy agencies are monitoring several civil and military officers who are suspected of having ties with the extremist party," the report said.

During the recent Pakistan Future Leaders Conference at Oxford University, which was attended by Pakistani students from 40 colleges and universities, at least 40 HuT activists "almost invaded" the meet and "did everything to dominate the agenda of different sessions", the report said.

The HuT activists "manipulated, cajoled, vilified and ridiculed Pakistani students" as part of a "well-orchestrated infiltration of the conference" aimed at hijacking the event, the report said.

The HuT activists distributed their material at the conference without getting permission from the organisers.

A brigadier and four majors of the Pakistan Army were recent convicted by a military court for having links to the HuT and sentenced to jail.

The HuT became active within several cantonments after the US military raid that killed Osama bin Laden in the garrison town of Abbottabad in May, 2011.